The Franklin County Democratic Party hosted a Meet the Candidates event at the Franklin County Annex Building on April 11, giving community members an opportunity to hear from local- and state-level candidates who are running for office in the upcoming election.

Candidates who attended included gubernatorial candidates Jerri Green, Tim Cyr and Carnita Atwater; congressional candidate Victoria Broderick, U.S. Senate candidate Maria Brewer, County Commission candidate Bruce

See Democrats, Page 2A ^ McMillan, constable candidate Stewart Schuch and District 7 School Board candidate Ashley Bowers.

Welcoming the audience was Franklin County Democratic Party Chairman Sandra Rice.

Rice recognized some VIPs in attendance, including Congressional District 4 Democratic Chair Kelly Northcutt and Franklin County School Board Member Sara Liechty. Shortly after, Rice spoke about the objective of the event.

“Our purpose in beginning this type of event is to claw back our place at the table,” Rice said. “If we don’t have candidates, and if we don’t support them, we can’t win. We also can’t win if we don’t vote for them.

“There are missed opportunities. Many county offices are running unopposed or unfilled. We need to step up.”

Rice then briefly introduced each candidate and gave them a 10-minute opportunity to address the audience.

The first candidate to speak was Cyr, who stated that the main priority infl uencing his gubernatorial campaign is healthcare and that his passion for a change stems from a dear friend who passed at age 16 from multiple sclerosis.

Cyr said he is 74 years old, and after having a serious stroke nearly 34 years ago, the trajectory of his life had changed. He is a veteran and entered the armed services as a draftee.

Having grown up in a small community in Illinois, he worked on farms as a boy and received his diploma from Southern Illinois University. He has been married for 13 years, grows his own produce and owns several small businesses.

“I’m running for governor, and if you’re looking for somebody who is going to have a certain amount of transparency, accountability and integrity, I’ll be your guy,” Cyr said.

The next gubernatorial candidate to speak was Green, who has been traveling throughout Tennessee from her hometown of Memphis where she serves on the Memphis City Council and as the chief public defender for Shelby County.

She said her main priorities include affordable housing, child care and healthcare, strong public schools and a vision for a safer Tennessee that would include free gun locks, mental-health support and background checks.

“I believe deeply that we can have a better state of Tennessee,” Green said. “In all of my 80 stops from Memphis all the way to Bristol and back, whether it was a big city, small town, or somewhere in between, I hear the same things over and over again.

“I don’t want a gilded ballroom. I want groceries I can afford. I don’t want a renaming of the Kennedy Center. I want a reimagining of our schools. I don’t want less voting rights for women. I want more rights for what women can do with their bodies, and I certainly don’t want war abroad. I want healthcare right here.”

Green said she has already started making a plan for the state if she were to win the race for governor.

Her plans include different strategies for the attorney general, Department of Health heads and the head of the Department of Education. Her plans also include having the grocery tax eliminated and using Medicaid expansion money to end rural healthcare closures.

Green also said she believes the state should legalize marijuana and use the tax money to fix roads while also helping farmers. She ended her comments by encouraging the audience to get involved and get energized for the upcoming election.

Brewer, who is running against Republican incumbent Sen. Bill Hagerty, spoke about her platform of gold-standard healthcare and encouraging the audience to talk to people on the outside in the language of curiosity, fellowship and love.

“The truth is all Americans deserve gold-standard healthcare,” she said. “And we are a prosperous enough nation to have it when the corruption task isn’t stealing it from us.

“So, when I’m in the Senate, I will fight for goldstandard healthcare for all of us, but we’ve got to hold the criminals accountable.”

Among other candidates to speak and address the audience were Bowers, Atwater, McMillan, Broderick and Schuch.

A question-and-answer segment was held after each candidate was given their 10 minutes to address the audience, and questions were also welcome during their individual time at the podium.

Most questions asked were directed toward gubernatorial candidate Green’s comments and were in regard to concerns surrounding data centers, tax breaks, school vouchers and support for the LGBTQ community.

Rice closed out the event by encouraging the Democratic Party to exercise its right to vote.

“My motto this year has been: Every election counts, and every vote counts,” Rice said. “So go vote.”

The county and state primary elections are scheduled to be held Tuesday.